As you might imagine, wildfire numbers are higher than a year ago in California. For CalFire’s coverage area, there have been four-thousand-732 fires through September 9th, burning over 616-thousand acres. A year ago, they battled four-thousand-621 fires, scorching over 235-thousand acres. Mary Eldridge, with the Nevada-Yuba-Placer Unit, says local numbers were not available. She says wetter winters have been a factor…

Eldridge says regular tree trimming is also a must, so branches don’t hang on the ground, creating so-called “ladder fuels” that can greatly accelerate a fire. Replacing house vents with ones that have smaller openings is also helpful.